Chair components are often attached together by fastening mechanisms. Some fastening mechanisms, such as screws or bolts, often include portions that are visible to a seated user or a potential customer. For example, the head of a screw or bolt may be positioned along an outer portion of a frame member of a chair that can be seen by a user or potential customer. Such visible elements may detract from the aesthetic effect provided by a chair or article of furniture
Some chair components may be attached together by overmolding one component onto another component. Such molding may occur using injection molding mechanisms and require separate shots, or molding steps for molding the first component and then molding the second component onto the first component. Alternatively, a structure may be purchased from a supplier and a component may subsequently be overmolded onto that structure. The use of such overmolding often requires significant expense in the purchasing of one or more molds. Further, overmolding may only be utilized for certain components that meet particular structural requirements or that are only accessible at a select few steps in a chair manufacturing process, which may limit assembly options and increase the costs of manufacturing an article of furniture, such as a chair.
A new method of attaching furniture components is needed. Preferably, the new method provides design flexibility, assembly processing design flexibility, and permits components to be attached without the attachment negatively impacting the aesthetic effect provided by the furniture assembled in accordance with that method.